text:
September 5, 2016 6:03:17 am
Domestic copper industry has urged the government to protect it from the annual USD 1 billion imports of the metal from Japan and ASEAN countries, with which India has inked market opening trade pacts.
Hit by the rising imports, industry body Indian Primary Copper Producers Association (IPCPA) has approached Cabinet Secretary P K Sinha requesting him to consider reviewing the Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) with Japan and ASEAN countries, among other measures.
“Copper prices are around USD 5,000 a tonne and with 2 LT of imports, the hit is around USD 1 billion annually. We met Cabinet Secretary and drew his attention towards industry’s plight,” IPCPA Vice President R Ramnath told PTI.
Best of Express Premium
Indian manufacturers are losing share in the domestic market due to rising imports of refined copper products. They nearly constitute one-third of the market rising at alarming CAGR of 22 per cent over the last 5 years, he added.
Every year, India consumes around 6.7 lakh tonnes (LT) of copper, an important industrial metal that is used in power and telecom, consumer durables as well as electrical goods, of which imports alone account for one-third or roughly 2 LT, he said.
However, “they (import) is expected to cross 2.5 LT mark in 2016-17,” he said.
IPCPA constitutes state-run Hindustan Copper Ltd, Anil Agarwal-led Vedanta Ltd and Aditya Birla Group’s Hindalco, which account for 100 per cent copper production in the country.
India, with a total copper production capacity of 10 LT, produces about 7.9 LT of the metal of which 4.6 is consumed in the country, while 3.5 LT is exported mainly to China.
“In the last 20 years, copper firms have invested a total of around Rs 30,000 crore in the sector that now is in the red due to imports, which are eating up into the companies’ sales and profits. This needs to be checked,” Ramnath, who is CEO of Vedanta’s Copper business rued.
IPCPA has requested the government to revisit the FTA’s pending for review — with ASEAN nations (in 2016) and with Japan (in 2017), he said.
FTA or Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) seeks to liberalise trade and services regime besides removing non-tariff barriers and encouraging investments.
“We have also urged for increasing custom duty on copper products from 5 per cent to 7.5, the reinstatement of export incentives and reducing duty on copper concentrates to nil from 2.5 per cent at present,” Ramnath added.
The industry employs around 50,000 people directly and indirectly and has contributed Rs 34,000 crore in the last three years through exports. Besides it serves more than 800 small and medium enterprises, he said.
“Rise in imports will impact firms, which in turn will affect India’s balance of trade with China as India exports around USD 2 billion worth of copper products to the People’s Republic — constituting 15-20 per cent of the total outbound shipments to the Communist nation,” Ramnath added.
📣 Join our Telegram channel (The Indian Express) for the latest news and updates
- The Indian Express website has been rated GREEN for its credibility and trustworthiness by Newsguard, a global service that rates news sources for their journalistic standards.


text:
PM Relocations expands operations with new warehouse in Mumbai
The company aims to address the demand within Mumbai as well as commercial goods and fine art movements.
P.M. Relocations acquired a new warehouse facility with a total 25,000 square feet space at Shree Rajlaxmi Logistics Park in Mumbai, Maharashtra.
This expansion marks a significant milestone in the company's continued growth and commitment to providing unparalleled moving solutions to its clients worldwide.
PM Relocations aims to address the increasing demand for storage and relocations within the bustling city of Mumbai, catering to both short-term and long-term storage requirements, as well as commercial goods and fine art movements.
"We are excited to take up a new warehouse facility in Mumbai," said Aakanksha Bhargava, CEO at PM Relocations, "This expansion allows us to enhance our operational efficiency, improve customer satisfaction, and meet the growing needs of our clients. We are dedicated to providing stress-free moving experiences, and this new warehouse further strengthens our ability to deliver on that promise."
The new warehouse offers a host of benefits to PM Relocations and its clients. With increased storage capacity, the company can streamline its operations, reducing transportation costs and enhancing flexibility. Additionally, the state-of-the-art facility includes temperature-controlled zones to cater to specialized storage requirements. To ensure the utmost security and monitor activities within the warehouse, 24/7 CCTV surveillance has been implemented.
As an organization known for its commitment to quality service and customer-centric approach, PM Relocations constantly seeks opportunities to optimize its operations and provide tailored solutions. The addition of this new warehouse space aligns with the company’s vision of making relocations seamless for families, corporates, and other customers whether they are moving locally or internationally.

domain: news


text:
The Alaska Department of Fish and Game has released an extensive look at the salmon season just passed mixed with a peek at the one coming up.
The state is predicting a bumper salmon crop next year in terms of numbers, with a total catch expected to be about 179 million fish, an increase of 30 percent over the 2012 season catch of 127 million fish. However, that number is driven by an expected odd-year jump in low-value pink salmon harvest expected to reach 118 million fish, compared to the 2012 catch of 68 million pinks.
Nearly half of the pink harvest should take place in Southeast, where ADF&G predicts a catch of 54 million fish. That compares to a 2012 pink harvest of 21.3 million fish.
Prince William Sound is looking at a potential harvest of 38.3 million pinks, up from 27.2 million in 2012, but the vast majority of those, 33.6 million fish, are expected to come from hatchery production.
The harvest of other species is predicted to remain largely flat, with sockeye, cohos and chums expected to come in in numbers within a percentage point of last season.
However, the distribution of the “money fish” is expected to shift according to area.
Bristol Bay, which had a fairly normal catch of 20.6 million sockeye in 2012, is expected to see that fall by 4 million fish.
Upper Cook Inlet is expecting nearly a million more sockeye than last year, at 4.9 million, and Kodiak is expected to be up about half a million, at 2.7 million. Chignik is looking for about 800,000 more fish, with a predicted harvest of 2.6 million sockeye.
All together, the expected harvest of sockeye statewide is 34.3 million fish, which would have once been considered a pretty good season for Bristol Bay alone, which saw a harvest of 44 million sockeye in 1995, and 31 million as recently as 2009. The 20-year average for Bristol Bay from 1992-2011 was 37.3 million sockeye.
The statewide harvest of sockeye for that banner year in Bristol Bay, 1995, was 63.5 million. The statewide harvest of all species that year was 217.8 million.
The value of last year’s salmon harvest in terms of ex-vessel prices was $505 million, with Southeast producing $152.3 million of that. More than half of the value in that area was chum salmon, with a harvest of 10.6 million fish and an average price of 84 cents, for a total of $82.6 million.
Bristol Bay came in second with a value of $121 million, and Prince William Sound in third with $110.9 million. Kodiak made a distant fourth place with a value of $46.5 million.
Although it came in fifth statewide in terms of ex-vessel value of the commercial salmon fishery at $36.2 million, Cook Inlet took the prize for the most money paid per salmon caught of all species, at an average of $8.14 per fish. Bristol Bay came in second at $5.44 per fish overall.
With an average sockeye weight of 6.7 pounds, compared to 5.7 in Bristol Bay, and an average price of $1.51 per pound, compared to $1 per pound in Bristol Bay, coupled with a lack of substantial numbers of lower-value pinks, chums or cohos, the Cook Inlet salmon fishery delivered the best bang for the buck.
Cook Inlet also grossed more than the Alaska Peninsula/Aleutian Islands (Area M), Chignik and Yukon commercial salmon fisheries combined, and within $200,000 of adding the $2 million Kuskokwim salmon fishery to the mix.
Area M brought in $17.5 million, Chignik $13.8 million and Yukon $3.1 million.
Salmon prices are expected to be strong in 2013, according to University of Alaska Fairbanks fisheries economist Gunnar Knapp. Find the full report through the ADF&G website at http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=fishingCommercial.main.
The Northwest Trade Adjustment Assistance Center is offering federal grants for fishermen harmed by imports of foreign products.
According to a press statement, the federal grant program is available to help “Made in America” companies become more competitive and save U.S. jobs. The funds come from the TAA program of the U.S. Commerce Department’s Economic Development Administration to assist a wide range of businesses and service industries. Companies that are losing sales to foreign imports or have been forced to lay off workers or cut back on hours are likely eligible for the TAA grants.
The release notes that Alaska’s seafood industry is a prime example. Wild salmon faces intense competition from less expensive farmed fish from Chile and Norway. Alaska king crab gets clobbered by Russian product; snow crab sales get squeezed by imports from Eastern Canada.
Most recently, Alaska cod markets have crumbled due to enormous amounts of fish coming from the Barents Sea.
Alaska seafood companies, fish processors and brokers, and other related businesses may be eligible to receive up to $75,000 in grants for a wide range of projects of their choice. The funds enable recipients to develop and complete projects that they might not otherwise have considered.
For example, with the help of TAA funds, an Alaska salmon processor created a new corporate brand identity and developed product labels, brochures and other marketing materials in several languages. Sales are up by 20 percent from increased catalog and Internet sales.
An Alaska fishing family was able to start marketing their own products by using TAA funds to develop a web presence.
Other projects can include marketing and branding, designing trade show booths, new product development, site layouts, customer service analysis, custom software creation, manufacturing design and site layouts, and specialized staff training, to name but a few.
TAA staff will work with fishermen at no cost to determine if your company is eligible for TAA grant funding. They help clients develop a strategic plan, and make sure it is accomplished by hiring outside experts to complete the projects. All information is treated as confidential. Find more information about TAA grants for “Made in America” companies at www.nwtaac.org or contact Patrick Meuleman, client development manager, at firstname.lastname@example.org.
Cristy Fry has commercial fished out of Homer and King Cove since 1978. She can be reached at email@example.com.


text:
When people develop companies, their dream is to make to the list of top recognized and respected brands but every once in awhile brands take a hard hit. And these hits can have a lasting impression. It took most of these companies’ years to build up their brand name, but only a short time to put a permanent mark on their record.
1. Martha Stewart: Currently in a legal battle between Macy’s Inc. and J.C. Penny Co. Inc., on which retailer has the rights to sell her brand items.
2. Apple: Sales for apple products are down because of the creation of Galaxy SIII and the Galaxy S4, which many are reporting are better than the iPhones.
3. Hyundai: Fabricated information lead to the recalling of many cars. This car company falsely reported the miles per gallon (MPG) on some of their cars, which resulted in dissatisfied customers.
4. Boeing: The delay of the reveal of this airplane has many concerned for the safety of this spacecraft. This spacecraft has not been given permission to take flight, which puts major concern in the eyes of the passengers.
5. J.C. Penney: With the end of major discounts, constant sales and low advertising, this company’s revenue has dropped substantially. Customers are not purchasing items at full price and the lack of discounts deters people from making purchases.
6. Best Buy: This company is having trouble competing with Amazon. Sales have decreased within the year and due to circumstances that were revealed about the CEO, the reputation of this company is faltering as well.
7. Groupon: Facing difficulty keeping up with the competition. Current revenue is at a low 0% to 9%.
8. BlackBerry: Because of the creation of smart phones, this company has not been able to fight off competitors. Their customers continue to leave because of the high interest in the other phones, which causes sales to decrease drastically.
9. J.P. Morgan: After a trade lost this bank millions of dollars, many began to question the integrity of the company. There was concern over how well the situation was handled and began to be investigated by the federal government.
So, what exactly went wrong? Customers began to loose trust within these businesses. Consumers do not want to see the products they buy plastered on front-page news with headlines revealing unknown information about such products. With the economy still trying to rebuild itself, corporations are still looking to make money. The best way to make money and keep customers coming back is to be honest. Unfortunately, for these brands, rebuilding their image will be an uphill battle.


text:
Ever since the publication of Satoshi Nakamoto’s white paper back in November 2008, “Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System,” the term “blockchain” has been synonymous with digital currencies in the sense of the underlying technology that allows for the transfer of value, peer-to-peer.
What’s interesting is that the term “blockchain” is not used once in that white paper. The purpose of the paper was to propose a solution to the core issue of double-spending a digital currency, which is the representation of a transfer of value directly between transacting parties, without the use of a central trusted third party.
Currencies by definition are a medium of exchange for goods and services, a unit of account, as well as stores of value. Money, in its traditional sense, fulfills all of these three elements.
Central bank digital currency
There is continued significant interest in central bank digital currencies, or CBDCs, at this time — not from the blockchain and crypto community but actually from a core group of some of the most influential central banks, including the Bank of England, the Swiss National Bank, the European Central Bank, the Bank of Japan, the Bank of Canada, the Swedish Riksbank and the Bank of International Settlements.
Related: Did CBDCs affect the crypto space in 2020, and what’s next in 2021? Experts answer
The confirmation in late 2020 from the United Kingdom’s chancellor of the exchequer (the head of Her Majesty’s Treasury), states that the United Kingdom will draft regulations for private stablecoins and research CBDCs, demonstrating the momentum that this topic currently has. China has undoubtedly emerged as a leader in its development of CBDCs, having recently proposed that there be a global set of rules that addresses issues such as interoperability between jurisdictions.
Related: How the digital yuan stablecoin impacts crypto in China: Experts answer
Central to any national monetary policy and financial stability is the public’s trust in central banks, and its trust that money provided by the central bank fulfills those three key elements of a currency — whether it’s issued in physical or digital form. A central bank digital currency is not a stablecoin nor is it a digital asset but rather a digital representation of cash — i.e., that a digital pound today is worth the same tomorrow and its purchasing power (what its holder can buy) does not fluctuate beyond certain thresholds.
The European Central Bank’s proposal for a digital euro is built upon the premise of complementing the current cash and wholesale central bank deposit system in place. It is seen as a way of ensuring that European citizens are provided with access to a safe form of money in a fast-changing digital world, while actively promoting innovation in the field of retail payments, supporting society’s vulnerable and reducing their potential financial exclusion. A digital euro is also seen as an option for the reduction of the overall cost and ecological footprint of the current monetary and payments system.
Related: All that mined is not green: Bitcoin’s carbon footprint hard to estimate
With economies currently experiencing the development of ideas around central bank issues, stablecoins or private digital currencies, the experience has been roughly the same as with previous monetary innovations: coins, banknotes, checks and credit cards. Many see blockchain and distributed ledger technology, or DLT, as the mechanism to replace electronic currency in traditional bank accounts. Just as paper money succeeded gold and silver, electronic transfers could replace paper money.
The rise of digital currencies
The current COVID-19 pandemic bought motivation for cashless transactions and impacted the way society interacts financially, which has accelerated the concept of digital currencies in people’s minds. With fewer cash transactions taking place, businesses and consumers are more aware of the attributes and advantages of digital currencies.
Related: How has the COVID-19 pandemic affected the crypto space? Experts answer
Already, central banks engage with other qualifying financial institutions, most often clearing banks, through the use of electronic central bank deposits. Alongside this system, they also issue banknotes and coins to the public. A shift to digital versions of those notes and coins is a natural progression in our more digitized world.
However, this trend could lead to an unintended consequence: Within a cashless society, where the public no longer has access to a state-guaranteed system of payment, the private sector would control access to, development of and pricing for alternative payment methods. Unless, that is, governments issue digital currencies to the public through their respective central banks. But in a system where central banks could have a direct relationship with each individual, there would be significant disruption in the commercial banking market, including the issues of significant data holding and related data privacy. Would citizens want the central bank to know about each transaction they’ve made?
To facilitate any CBDC, the technology platform should fulfill certain key attributes:
Convenience: The penetration of smartphones in modern society allows for a “tap-to-pay” system that is well understood or for a QR code-based system.Security and resilience: Current mature cryptographic techniques provide users with data protection; either software- or hardware-based privacy enforcement. The resilience of a 24/7/365 infrastructure is critical to a CBDC’s performance.Speed and scalability: Transaction volumes and throughput will need to be maintained at a justifiable cost. Current centralized card networks show that very high transaction capacities are possible. Permissioned DLT networks could be equivalent substitutes for conventional technologies.Interoperability: The use of application programming interfaces, or APIs, are well established to support technologies interoperating and allow interaccount transactions. Common data standards will also play a part in interoperability.
With the example of Bitcoin (BTC), the blockchain infrastructure provides a fully decentralized, fully permissionless public network that, theoretically, no-one person, entity or authority has control over. In the same way, blockchain and/or DLTs can provide a similar network to support the issue of CBDCs among a national population.
However, the more popular framework for digital currencies is a centralized, permissioned network that provides the issuing authority, which is usually the national central bank, with a degree of control and greater oversight of the “blockchain” that records the digital currency transactions. That centralized permissioned distributed ledger could address these key attributes.
For some commentators, the ability of central banks to issue programmable CBDCs on a centralized permissioned blockchain is a positive development — for example, defining and controlling the uses of the digital money issued so that it can only be used for food, not alcohol, cigarettes or gambling. There are also transparency benefits that allow governments to act upon tax evasion and other criminal activity, by way of access to the underlying transactional data.
The original rationale for Satoshi’s white paper was to establish a protocol that allowed for the digital exchange of value, peer-to-peer without the reliance or requirement to go through a central authority.
It’s ironic that the very benefits that Satoshi explained in that white paper are now being considered by central banks as they research and consider how the technology could underpin new digitally issued currency. The two concepts have come into everyday conversation almost simultaneously, making it seem as if they are interwoven. Yet both the technology and the use case can exist apart.
Digital Isle of Man, an executive agency for the Isle of Man’s government, continues to encourage and support research into the issuance and use of digital currencies in all their forms, including stablecoins and CBDCs. Soramitsu, a fintech company delivering blockchain based solutions to businesses and governments — which is currently an associate of the agency’s accelerator program — recently announced its partnership with the National Bank of Cambodia to establish a secure, standardized digital currency alternative to paper bank notes on a single payment platform. The Bakong system is built upon the Hyperledger Iroha DLT, integrated with the traditional banking system, and providing users with easy access via ID document scan, photo check and biometric detection. Having such international experience provides the island with significant insight into any potential future implementation of digital currencies.
There are, of course, a number of technical, economic, financial and legal issues, including the impact of a digital currency on monetary policy, financial stability and banks’ business models, which are unfortunately beyond the limits of this article.
The views, thoughts and opinions expressed here are the author’s alone and do not necessarily reflect or represent the views and opinions of Cointelegraph.
Steve Billinghurst is regulatory lead at Digital Isle of Man, responsible for engaging with businesses and individuals interested in understanding how the island’s financial services regulatory framework impacts their digital business proposition. Steve’s role has also extended to maintaining an awareness and understanding of international crypto finance developments in key competitor jurisdictions and ensuring the Isle of Man its competitive position through ongoing review and update of its own legislative framework.


text:
Brand IP and analytics from Clarivate shed new light on the luxury brands sector; brands are growing their presence in non-traditional sectors and adapting to a new generation of consumers
London, U.K., December 7, 2021 – Clarivate Plc (NYSE:CLVT), a global leader in providing trusted information and insights to accelerate the pace of innovation, today released a new report, Luxury brands: Re-calibrating brand strategies for a changing world. Luxury brands are re-calibrating and advancing their digital brand strategies as they respond to today’s challenges and target new audiences and markets, according to the report.
Brands brave new sectors
Luxury brands are entering new sectors such as software, gaming and electronics, blurring previously clear lines between sectors. Computer, software, electrical and scientific products rank among the top five in terms of trademark filing activity for luxury conglomerate ), according to trademark research data in the report. The diverse business interests of LVMH, which range from luxury hotel management and fashion to wine and spirits, means that it is a microcosm of the luxury sector and therefore, a bellwether of broader industry trends.
Gordon Samson, President, IP Group, Clarivate, said, “Organizations faced unprecedented uncertainty in the last two years. Luxury brands were no exception. Spurred by the changing world, they have evolved the way they operate, from boosting their digital presence and embracing e-commerce to revamping the in-store experience to an immersive or hybrid experience. It will be interesting to see how and when luxury brands, masters of the art of brand building, accelerate the science of IP intelligence to inform decision making.”
Targeting Gen Z and millennial consumers
50% of luxury consumption globally is expected to come from young consumers by 2025. Generation Z and millennial consumers are less settled in their purchasing preferences, more adventurous and digital savvier than the older demographic luxury consumer. Brands are turning to digital to engage with these young consumers, adopting augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) technologies to bring virtual fashion shows and virtual showrooms to consumers’ living rooms. Trademarks filed by LVMH mentioning AR/VR in 2019 were more than double compared to the previous year, according to the report. Off-White, part of the LVMH family, registered marks for a VR headset, speaking to the brand’s appeal to a younger demographic.
Brands are also tapping on the Generation Z and millennial audience’s love of computer gaming, creating games to entertain and engage. launched , a computer game aimed at the Generation Z demographic. The report revealed a spike in trademark filing activity for Louis Vuitton in the computer games and software category between 2018 and 2019, which preceded the launch of Louis.
Brand protection in the digital sphere
The digital era offers new opportunities but also increased risks. Luxury brands, like other brands, can fall prey to alleged scammers and profiteers. In fact, the report revealed that luxury brand owners are often present in arbitrations and litigation against domain names that are acquired for high-risk activities such as deliberately diverting web traffic. A growing number of arbitrations involve luxury brands’ trademarks being used in their entirety in domain names, as profiteers seek to benefit from luxury brands’ reputation.
Samson concluded, “There are green shoots of recovery all over the world including in the luxury sector, but this recovery remains fragile. Luxury brands are contending with changing times, new audiences and greater expectations. Our brand IP and analytics, first unveiled in Top 100 Best Protected Global Brands 2021 offer context and fresh clarity to the luxury sector, helping to guide and inform brand owners’ strategy and decision making in a volatile landscape.”
Luxury brands: Re-calibrating brand strategies for a changing world can be found here.
# # #
Clarivate™ is a global leader in providing solutions to accelerate the lifecycle of innovation. Our bold mission is to help customers solve some of the world’s most complex problems by providing actionable information and insights that reduce the time from new ideas to life-changing inventions in the areas of science and intellectual property. We help customers discover, protect and commercialize their inventions using our trusted subscription and technology-based solutions coupled with deep domain expertise. For more information, please visit clarivate.com.
Clarivate media contact
Sofia Nogues, Senior External Communications Manager
 Source: Trademark research data from Clarivate, 2000 to present (Jun 2021). The dataset consists of trademark filing activity of LVMH as the parent holding company, including any entities that are subsidiaries, owned by the parent company or where LVMH has a majority stake.
 The Drum, “The luxury strategy: how to maintain brand value while driving online sales”, January 2021
 Source: IP litigation data from Clarivate, 2010 to present (Aug 2021). All arbitrations containing one of the following as the plaintiff: Armani, Burberry, Calvin Klein, Chanel, Chow Tai Fook, Dior, Fendi, Gucci, Hermes International, Luxottica, Louis Vuitton, LVMH, Moncler, Prada, Richemont, Supreme, Valentino, Versace, Yves Saint Laurent, Cartier, Bulgari, Tiffany & Co., Swatch, Rolex, Tag Heurer, Estee Lauder.


text:
Cultured tissue, harvested without killing any animals, could allow scientists to grow meals’ worth of products with just a handful of starter cells
Friday 2 March 2018 15:17 GMT
JUST "clean meat" promotional video
Meat grown in a laboratory could be on restaurant menus by the end of the year, one manufacturer has claimed.
In vitro animal products, sometimes referred to as “clean meat”, are made from stem cells harvested via biopsy from living livestock, which are then grown in a lab over a number of weeks.
Some environmentalists believe the process could be the key to reducing global warming, with one study predicting it could lower harmful greenhouse emissions by 96 per cent.
And the first products could be available for human consumption within months, according to Josh Tetrick, CEO of clean meat manufacturer JUST.
Chicken nuggets, sausage and foie gras created using the technique could be served in restaurants in the US and Asia "before the end of 2018", he told CNN.
But public perception and a reluctance to diverge from traditional farmed meat still represent considerable hurdles for the clean meat industry to overcome, he said.
“Gnarly problems, communication issues, regulatory issues,” would have to be solved before products went to market, he said in a separate interview with The Guardian.
His stance is shared by Mosa Meat, whose lab based at Maastricht University in the Netherlands, was responsible for creating the world’s first cultured hamburger.
The company’s chief scientific officer Professor Mark Post said the regulatory approval process could delay samples being distributed to suppliers by years.
He gave a time frame of three years before the company could sell its first product to the mass market.
But one recent study revealed one third of Americans would be willing to eat clean meat regularly or as a replacement for farmed meat.
To reach that point, companies will have to bring down the cost of mass production.
Memphis Meats, a food technology company based in San Francisco, has to spend around $2,400 (£1,800) to make 450 grams of beef.
But as techniques become more streamlined, the price is falling, and the company believes it will be able to send the first products to market by 2021.
In 2014, it offered a $1 million (£725,000) reward to the first scientist to produce and bring to market in vitro chicken meat.
“We believe it’s the first important step toward realising the dream of one day putting environmentally sound, humanely produced real meat into the hands and mouths of the people who insist on eating animal flesh,” the charity said in a statement.
An estimated 14.5 per cent of the planet’s global warming emissions stem from from the keeping and eating of livestock – more than from the entire transport sector.
Livestock emit methane, a potent greenhouse gas, while land clearing and fertilisers release large quantities of carbon.
“In searching for a new enemy to unite us, we came up with the idea that pollution, the threat of global warming, water shortages, famine and the like would fit the bill….All these dangers are caused by human intervention, and it is only through changed attitudes and behavior that they can be overcome. The real enemy then, is humanity itself.”
Ask yourself this, why are THEY pushing Agenda 21 / Agenda 2030 population control and 'solutions' like this on one hand and flooding the West with Third World invaders (who the PTB THEMSELVES define as useless eaters) on the other?
The authors then hit upon three conveniently contrived straw men who will help propel civilization towards their new global society; or what they term the resolutique: global warming, global economic development and retooling national economies for global objectives.
Climate change is the perfect foil. It's an issue that affects people around the world equally and allows the global elite to choose the experts that determine its origins and answers. Further, it can be portrayed as a time sensitive crisis that requires immediate attention; and it allows for the establishment of permanent global institutions through the United Nations.
As for ameliorating global poverty and Third World debt, these problems form the nucleus of economic globalization. That is, if one can redistribute the industrial capacity and wealth from the developed economies to the Third World, poverty and debt will mitigate. Moreover, if this can be accomplished without the influence of sovereign national governments, it insures that United Nations relief organizations minister directly to the impoverished, thereby increasing their influence and prestige.
Besides, by relocating industrial centers, corporations instantaneously garner control over demanding and independent minded workers of the First World. Forever altering democratic capitalist economies, like America's. Where people are free and regulate the economy via government; to a more market based system like China's. Where the economy function freely and people are regulated by industry through government. - http://rense.com/general95/first.htm
Will this be a weapon used in conjunction with the inevitable coming wars through which THEY seek to achieve THEIR cull of humanity?
If you want to eat meat - raise it or hunt it and dispatch and prepare it yourself.


text:
Following Yahoo's appointment of ex-PayPal chief Scott Thompson as its new chief executive this week, the big question on everyone's lips is whether Thompson has what it takes to turn the fortunes of the struggling web firm around.
I, for one, would like to see Yahoo perform well again, though I am not sure why, as I seldom use any of its products anymore, except perhaps for Flickr.
I even feel a pang of annoyance whenever a computer I am using defaults to a search engine other than Google, because the results fed back to me are never as helpful.
Perhaps it is because I used Yahoo in my teenage years to research school homework, along with the likes of AskJeeves and AltaVista, and it's the only one that retains a strong presence in the internet community. Or maybe it is just because I'm getting tired of writing endless stories about Yahoo's demise.
Yet much as I would like to see Thompson succeed, my instinct tells me he will meet the same fate as his predecessor Carol Bartz.
When Bartz was appointed by the Yahoo board, the chairman Roy Bostock referred to her "track record of driving growth" and underscored how Bartz had helped turn Sun Microsystems into a billion-dollar company before her stint with Autodesk, where she boosted revenues from £195m to £1.04bn in just four years.
Similarly, the Yahoo board this week noted Thompson's success during previous leadership positions.
Under Thomson's leadership, PayPal solidified its lead as the global online payment service, expanding its user base from 50 million to more than 104 million active users in 190 countries, increasing the number of merchant partners to more than eight million globally and growing revenues from $1.8bn to over $4bn in 2011.
However, while Thompson, like Bartz, has an impressive CV, there are other more ominous similarities. Not least, his inexperience in online content and advertising, the area that makes up the firm's biggest chunk in revenue.
Furthermore, Thompson is also an external hire, thereby delivering a clear message that Yahoo does not believe it breeds leadership qualities in its staff, nor in its business for that matter.
Cotton seedling freezes to death as Chang'e-4 shuts down for the Moon's 14-day lunar night
Fortnite easily out-earns PUBG, Assassin's Creed Odyssey and Red Dead Redemption 2 in 2018
Meteor showers as a service will be visible for about 100 kilometres in all directions
Saturn's rings only formed in the past 100 million years, suggests analysis of Cassini space probe data
New findings contradict conventional belief that Saturn's rings were formed along with the planet about 4.5 billion years ago


text:
The “Let Us Pride” campaign, launched on social media in Syria to support the national currency, has sparked a lot of controversy and cynicism in the country.
#Letna_ our pride
Activists launched through the social media sites in Syria a campaign entitled “Lirana our pride”, aiming to support the Syrian pound by inviting merchants to sell their goods at a value of one Syrian pound, provided the buyer owns a “metallic” Syrian pound, in a symbolic sign of its value.
The beginning of the campaign was from Homs Governorate, where a large number of commercial stores joined the campaign, which announced the provision of its services in various fields for only one Syrian pound ..
The campaign later spread to a number of governorates.
Opinions were divided on social media about the campaign, between those who saw it as a beautiful and influential initiative, and those who considered it a misleading campaign, aimed at distracting people from the economic problems of the country.
Masoud Akko considered that any campaign aimed at “mitigating the effects of the high dollar exchange rate against the Syrian pound is an important and useful step.”
Ayman Abboud said that “the initiative is important” to spread the culture of anti-corruption and to educate, educate, and solidify the street, regardless of its actual results.
On the other hand, others ridiculed the campaign, saying that media outlets loyal to the Syrian regime were standing behind it, and that it was just an exploitation of the Syrians’ need.
Some also pointed out that some shops announced their participation in the campaign, but they did not adhere to it, and only said, “The offer has ended.”
Muhammad al-Hallaq called on the state to participate in the campaign if it is sincere by selling life supplies such as gas, fuel and passports in one pound, considering that the campaign underestimates the minds.
Another said that solving the lira’s problem will only be by “putting a finger on the wound and identifying the causes of its real collapse, and without it is a waste of time and effort and the solution will not come from the people because the currency recovery is linked to a long-term process led by the government with the support of the people.”


text:
JD Sports silent on potential Go Outdoors "takeover"
The retailer refused to comment on what it calls market speculation and rumour
UK retailer JD Sports is keeping tight-lipped regarding reports it is eyeing an acquisition of rival retailer Go Outdoors.
According to an article published by Sky News, the retailer is among a number of bidders exploring offers for the UK footwear and equipment retailer.
Last year JD Sports saw its earnings nearly double, boosted by sales in its sports fashion division and continued expansion across Europe.
In the year to the end of January, net earnings reached GBP100.6m (US$142.3m) from GBP54m a year earlier. Gross margin was at 48.5%, while pre-tax profit surged 45% to GBP131.6m.
The company has declined to comment on the reported acquisition, with a spokesperson telling just-style "JD Sports does not comment on market speculation and rumour."
According to Sky News, the acquisition, if it were to happen, would cement its status as the London Stock Market's biggest sporting goods retailer.
Sectors: Fibres & fabrics
Help test our new apparel sourcing tool.
- Outlook 2017 – What next for apparel sourcing?
- Outlook 2017 – What else is the industry watching?
- Outlook 2017 – Strategies for sourcing success
- Is China about to burst its apparel trade bubble?
- Outlook 2017 – Challenges and opportunities
- M&S quality focus finally lifts clothing sales
- MAS Holdings planning second industrial park
- Sri Lanka on track to regain EU GSP+ benefits
- 22 dos and dont's – When sourcing goes wrong
- Aéropostale to reopen 500 stores across the US
- Global apparel markets: product developments and innovations, October 2016
- Outdoor performance apparel 2016: A broader perspective
- Global market review of lingerie – forecasts to 2022
- Anti-odour clothing: fresh fashion for an active lifestyle
- Southeast Asia strategic sourcing review – a focus on Cambodia, Vietnam and Myanmar


text:
Remember Asimo? It was that 'cute' little robot that Honda used to showcase technology, well now it's back faster and more intelligent than ever
Honda have unveiled their updated Asimo robot which features a slimmed down design as well as improved physical movement, face and voice recognition.
Designed to be more than just a showcase of Honda's technological ability, Asimo 2011 has been developed in conjuction with the help effort at the crippled Fukushima Nuclear Plant in Japan. In fact Asimo's new advanced arm and hand was a starting point for a robotic arm that is now being used to turn valves in radioactive environments at the plant.
During the demonstration of Asimo's abilities the robot was able to jog at 5.6mph as well as pick up a flask, take off the top and pour a drink. Using its recognition technology it was also then able to differentiate three persons and work out which drinks they would like.
While this is all very neat, the purpose of Asimo is to be a stepping stone for further technologies to develop and as a step forward this is very much a major jump, taking into account the huge technological breakthroughs in voice and face recognition both being showcased elsewhere in Apple's Siri as seen on the iPhone 4S and of course Face Unlock which features on Android Ice Cream Sandwich.
What do you think of Asimo, a useful tool or just an incredibly expensive gimmick? Let us know via the comments box below...


text:
LAST UPDATED : Aug 14, 2018, 07:07 PM IST
- Narendra Modi phones Donald Trump over Afghanistan, receives trade deficit advice
A New Year’s greeting phone call initiated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to US President Donald Trump appears to have mitigated India’s concerns over the expected US drawdown from Afghanistan, with the two sides agreeing to increase cooperation in the war-torn country as part of a larger US-India strategic partnership.
- 'Relief for farmers, SMEs to hit fiscal deficit target'
“Some of the measures under consideration, such as direct cash transfers to the agriculture sector, will reduce intermediaries and limit leakage in the system. However, the final design and implementation of the schemes will ultimately determine the size of any efficiency gains,” the agency said in a statement ahead of the interim budget to be unveiled on February 1.
- Government breaches full-year fiscal deficit target at October-end
The fiscal deficit or gap between expenditure and revenue was Rs 6.48 lakh crore or 103.9 per cent of Budget Estimate (BE) during April-October of the current financial year. At end of October 2017-18, the deficit was 96.1 per cent of the BE.
- Trade war: India may come to China's rescue as US tightens noose
India has drawn a list of goods it can export to China, replacing US exports that have become costlier in light of the trade spat between the the 2 countries, according to a person familiar with the development.India has identified more than 40 products where itcan replace or capture US trade market share with China.
- We might end up 2018-19 with 3.3% fiscal deficit: Economic affairs secretary
Economic affairs secretary Subhash Chandra Garg on Saturday exuded confidence that FY 2018-19 will end with a fiscal deficit of 3.3 per cent of the GDP, marginally lower than the revised estimate of 3.4 per cent for the year. As per the interim Budget tabled in Parliament on Friday, the government has projected a fiscal deficit target of 3.4 for the next financial year 2019-20.
- Government ups import duty on telecom gear to trim trade deficit
This is the second round of duty increase in as many weeks to cut down on what is viewed as 'non-essential' imports and save precious dollars at a time when the trade and the current account deficit are widening and piling pressure on the rupee.
- Exports rise 19% in Aug on rising global crude
The country’s exports grew 19.2 per cent in August as a rise in global crude prices helped increase the value of shipments of petroleum products. “Export trade during August 2018 was recorded at $27.8 billion, a positive growth of 19.2 per cent. Exports excluding petroleum also reported a positive growth of 17.4 per cent,” commerce and industry minister Suresh Prabhu tweeted.


text:
Siparex and Somfy Participations have taken a majority stake in Groupe Sofilab, a French producer of livestock watering troughs.
Emeram bought a majority stake in the digitalisation consultancy in 2019 via its EUR 400m debut fund
Sale is required for Adevinta to obtain approval from the UK CMA to buy eBay Classifieds
Series E, which also features SoftBank Vision Fund 2, gives the company a USD 2.35bn valuation
New team will be staffed by three or four investment specialists based in London


text:
Big Billion Days!
Great India Sale!
Remember when you or your acquaintance ordered a super cheap product and found out that it was tampered, broken, or started malfunctioning after a couple of weeks and you either deemed it a fake or tried to exchange or return it? Of course.
But more importantly, do you remember how those experiences shaped your attitude towards the product’s brand?
“Such a fake brand. What a scam!”
“Of course the products are cheap. Such poor quality.”
“Never ordering from this brand again.”
But what if it wasn’t the brand’s fault? What if the prices were controlled by the marketplace, and so, were the products being sold on the website under that brand’s name?
You see what I’m getting at. This backlash is what GOQii faced from its customers in lieu of the deeply discounted product sale by Flipkart over the marketplace platform. In this manner, their market rep was tarnished to such an extent that their contractors also withdrew from the respective agreements, and customers cancelled orders. The company was driven to bankruptcy, reveals the Founder – Vishal Gondal to CNBC.
And this is why GOQii had to come forward to fight this battle, and try to repair the damage. The first step was the legal case on Flipkart, which turned into a battle that is still going on. “The next hearing is scheduled around 6-7th June, and Flipkart has armoured itself by hiring Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas as a lawyer for the case,” revealed a source in a conversation with Entrackr on the condition of anonymity.
The second step that GOQii has taken is to salvage its reputation amongst the consumers and ensure that the harm caused to them in the process is taken care of. Why? It is a health-tech brand and anything going wrong with health monitoring products means a possible life harm to the customers, one thing a business alike GOQii cannot afford.
“GOQii could not let its customer suffer due to the sale and hence it is proposing a free replacement of defective products to the users,” revealed the above-mentioned source.
The rumors are that Flipkart has been hoarding fake replicas to sell at a lower price. “Otherwise, selling the product at a price lower than manufacturing cost would make no sense,” added the source.
There have been contentions in the ecosystem, that e-commerce marketplaces sometimes to afford selling products at such cheap prices engage in scouting fakes from markets like Gaffar and Nehru Place and then sells them on the platform.
Not just this, Flipkart has announced its own private label to target sports and fitness conscious audience under the name Adrenex which is slated to have more than 220 products of various categories. Is this just damage control, or a way to sell the inventory that it cannot sell because the court has banned it from selling GOQii products on the platform? Time will tell.
Flipkart in it’s response said, “We take legal compliance seriously and we are fully compliant with Indian Law. This is a legal matter with a supplier and we cannot comment on the details of a legal case, but we are engaged with the supplier to come to a swift resolution.”
On the other hand, queries sent to Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas did not elicit response until early Tuesday (June 4).
For now, the matter hasn’t ended at all. Court hearings are still pending, AIOVA is following the developments to support GOQii till the end, and even the government is consistently engaged in evolving the e-commerce policy for the betterment of sellers and diminishing the scope of exploitation by these large international or internationally backed e-commerce marketplaces.
How Flipkart will manage to weave its way out of this one, only the upcoming Court hearing will decide.


text:
The Cole Ford Mercury dealership in Winchester is closing. In a statement, company officials said they "made a voluntary and mutual agreement with Ford Motor Co. to close the dealership supporting Ford's consolidation efforts to 'right size' their dealer count." The news release thanked the dealership's customers and employees. The dealership, located at 1010 Bypass Road in Winchester, will be selling off its inventory of new and used vehicles.
The dealership is the second Ford lot in recent weeks to announce it will be closing. The Nolan Ford dealership in Georgetown is also closing.


text:
2M Company, a subsidiary of Colorado-based Headwater Companies, announced on November 1 the acquisition of Casper Well Products in Casper, Wyoming, which provides a complete line of well supplies for the water well, mining, and environmental industries. The acquisition is the first expansion of 2M into the Wyoming market.
Casper Well Products has been serving the Wyoming market since 1975. The branch is located on three acres with 26,000 square feet of warehouse space. 2M has been providing service to the water industry since 1978, and Casper will be the 18th branch for 2M and the first branch in Wyoming.
“We are very excited about being able to expand into the Wyoming market and fulfill our goal of being your first choice for all your water needs based on our selection, pricing, and most important, our legendary service,” says Buzz Mills, 2M president.
Stan Mundorf, who has been with Casper Well Products for 41 years, will be assistant branch manager. Kryss Lineweber, a seven-year employee, will be inside sales, Jason Soester, who has 18 years with Casper Well Products, will be the delivery driver, and Joey Patterson, who joined this year, will continue as the warehouse associate.


text:
As the virus continued to spread, investors have pulled back, especially on early stage companies.
This mindset towards fintech will be irrevocably changed as the result of the Covid-19 crisis.
A new study shows a number of incumbents are catching up with digital banks on user experience.
During this quiet period of time, it’s a good time for reflection and I was lucky enough to be commissioned to produce some research on how European FinTech influencers see the future of payments post-pandemic.
Visa has facilitated the first request to pay message sent and received using standards developed by Pay.UK.
San Francisco-based cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase is finally acquiring Tagomi, a prime brokerage platform specializing in digital asset trading.
European financial institutions are spending between €50-€100 million on Open banking initiatives, with spend exceeding €100 million for nearly half (45%) of 290 financial institutions surveyed by Swedish account aggregator Tink.
Startups in the payments and lending sectors led the number of investments in India, whereas China’s deals were more in cross-sector fintech startups
Tencent Holdings aims to bolster blockchain technology development across China as part of a $70 billion investment in fintech.
Shopify announced a business debit card (Shopify Balance), a buy now / pay later option for consumers (Installments), and an AI powered fulfilment network for delivery of goods and integration with Facebook and Instagram for shops.
Something weird has been happening recently. For a long time whenever someone said “post-crisis” it was obvious what they meant, they meant the period after the global financial crisis.
Small Businesses are the lifeblood of the global economy, listen as Michael Abare- Principal Product Manager for Fusion Digital Banking at Malauzai, a Finastra Company explains how the Finastra ecosystem enables financial institutions to reach and assist more small business clients. Then for the second half, Jason Henrichs hosts Derik Sutton VP Marketing of Autobooks to learn how Autobooks has been able to free up more time for small businesses to take care of the more important things in life and the launch of their “Get Paid with Autobooks” initiative.


text:
During the second day of Microsoft’s Build Developers Conference in San Francisco the company briefly talked about upcoming Windows 8 apps that could appear on the new Xbox One.
The majority of the conference has focused on Windows 8.1, which is Microsoft’s short-term goal leading up to the official launch of the OS’s first update. Earlier today Steve Guggenheimer, vice president of Microsoft’s Developer & Platform Evangelism group, did however talk about the upcoming role that Xbox One will have in the long-term focus from a developer’s standpoint. “Xbox one has two engines, it’s got a gaming engine and it essentially has a Windows 8 engine,” Guggenheimer stated, the new Xbox One architecture allows the system to run on a Windows 8 kernel, allowing the Xbox one to become easily connected to other Windows 8 devices like tablets and PCs.
Guggenheimer asked that the developers things about bringing their Windows 8 apps to the Xbox One, showing debugging interfaces and briefly teasing other tools and UIs that developers will use to do so. He then stated, “If you want to know about how to get a head start about thinking about developing for Xbox One, the logical thing to do is go build Windows 8 applications.” Microsoft will go into more specific details at a later date, but as of now the Xbox One will support native apps on Xbox One as well as web versions.
Ever since Microsoft announced that the Xbox One would be dropping its used-games restrictions and 24hr check-in policy, the Xbox One has seen a substantial increase in pre-orders when tracking the Xbox Pre-orders on Amazon


text:
McVitie's has slashed sugar in some of its most iconic biscuits - including Digestives and Hob Nobs - as part of a major recipe shake-up.
Original Digestives, Rich Tea, Chocolate Digestives, Caramel Digestives, Original Hobnobs, Chocolate hobnobs and Ginger Nuts will all soon be made with less sugar.
Original Digestives will boast 9% less sugar and 5% less salt, down at 15.16g of sugar having been at 16.6g per 100g.
Public Health England’s target is 26.2g of sugar per 100g - well above the new level in your favourite biccy.
David Murray, managing director of Pladis UK & Ireland, said: “For years, we have been working on reducing sugar in the nation’s favourite biscuits.
"Our fundamental philosophy is that we will absolutely not compromise on taste or the quality of ingredients.”
Dr Alison Tedstone, chief nutritionist at Public Health England, said: “We’re pleased that McVitie’s is the latest household name to commit to offering healthier products.
“This announcement shows reducing sugar in biscuits is possible and we look forward to seeing further reductions in the future.”
Rich Tea biscuits now contain 18.5g of sugar per 100g, Original Hobnobs 22.9g, Milk Chocolate Digestives 28.5g and Dark Chocolate 26.6g.
Happy munching, biscuit fans!


text:
Another leak hints at a January 14 launch of Galaxy S21 series
Samsung has not announced the launch date of its upcoming flagship Galaxy S21 series, but we are already getting contradictory reports of the launch date.
The text above is a summary, you can read full article
Indian government slams Facebook over WhatsApp 'privacy' update, wants its own Europe-style opt-out switch
Over long US weekend, GitHub HR boss quit after firing Jewish staffer who warned Nazis were at the Capitol
If my calculations are correct, when Google Chrome hits version 88, you're gonna see some serious... security
FireEye publishes details of SolarWinds hacking techniques, gives out free tool to detect signs of intrusion
Engineers blame 'intentionally conservative' test parameters for premature end to Space Launch System hotfire
Bitstamp Support Phone Number +1-[850-424-1333]
Global Inflatable Lighter Market Updates, News and Data 2020
Pence, McConnell, and McCarthy are skipping Trump's departure ceremony
Control heads up a new batch of Xbox Game Pass games for January
More People To Follow
The Pak Studio
© Techsite.io 2021.


text:
Customers to find the latest fall fashions at even cheaper prices now at Gamiss
Shenzhen, China (PRWEB) October 05, 2016
Gamiss is known for inspiring young women from the ages of 18 to 35 with the latest contemporary and trendy fashions. The company has built up a huge following over the course of the last few years, in part to its great model selling clothes at affordable prices, while keeping the quality extremely high. With Gamiss being a site for the youth, the company is always updating to keep up with the latest tech and non-tech demands that customers mention. With the fall season now in full swing, Gamiss executives are proud to announce the launch of the new fall wardrobe collection, along with new coupon codes for Facebook followers. The new fall collection will allow customers to dress for the season, while the new coupon codes will allow them to save even more money.
September is a busy time of the month - not only is it back-to-school season for most, it is also the start of the fall season. This creates an increased desire to buy a new wardrobe. Gamiss has been working hard for the last several months to update and bring the latest fall fashions in time for the start of the season. The new fall collection is now available with more products rolling out daily. The benefit of buying from Gamiss over other fashion e-commerce sites is that the company specializes in selling the latest fashions at affordable prices. Gamiss can do this because of its relationship with big manufacturing firms.
On top of the new fall fashions Gamiss is trying to give back more to community members with more coupons. Currently, the company is looking to build its Facebook community up. The benefit of having more Facebook likes for Gamiss is that the company can push its latest offers to one place for all customers to see. Customers in return will get a 10% coupon. The coupon for this is very visible and located at the top left banner. Just click the “Wow, coupon here!” button and click the like button from there. This is an easy way to get some instant savings.
Gamiss is always looking to improve the site, and these changes are just the beginning. In September alone, Gamiss has done the changes mentioned above, and even added a size converting function so customers can always pick the right size. With October now underway, the company is excited to release even more changes. Customers are asked to keep checking back for more updates!
Related link: http://www.gamiss.com/


text:
A bride was moved to happy tears when she discovered a secret handwritten note attached to her second-hand gown that included a simple but beautiful request.
Looking through the window of a British Red Cross charity shop in 2019, London woman Laura Trower spotted her dream wedding dress.
The gown, featuring a full-length white, flowing skirt and lace-detailed bodice, also included a special surprise from its original owner, a woman named Fran.
The British Red Cross's Forest Hill store shared the gown's back story on its Facebook page earlier this month.
"When Laura was planning her wedding a few years ago, she knew she wanted to wear a pre-loved dress to give more life to a beautiful garment and to donate to charity at the same time," the post read.
The store said Trower "couldn't believe it" when she saw the dress in the window, and it was the first she tried on. The garment "fit perfectly", the post added, and Trower's purchase funded three wheelchairs for the charity.
"To add to the experience, there was a lovely note attached to the dress from the previous owner, Fran, saying she would love to see photos of the dress used again!" the store added.
"Laura subsequently got in touch with Fran and they have shared messages and photos of both weddings."
Speaking to The Sun about the discovery, Trower said she was surprised by the message.
"Everyone gets attached to their wedding dress, I just wanted to know who had it. But I wasn't really expecting anything," she told the publication.
"It makes me so happy knowing someone so sweet enjoyed the dress like I did."
Fulfilling the note's request, Trower contacted Fran after her wedding, sharing photos of the gown in action for the second time.
In return, Fran sent some of her own portraits and the pair discussed their respective weddings.
Fran originally purchased the dress from a Camden bridal store for £1,500 ($AUD 2,765) in 2017, before donating it to the Red Cross.
In a bid to continue tradition, Trower has donated her gown back to the same charity shop - with a new note.
"Laura is still so thankful for Fran for donating the dress so this week she took it back to the same charity shop for someone else to love as much as she did," the Red Cross store confirmed on Facebook.
"We have pinned a similar note to the dress this time and Laura hopes to hear from whoever buys it to continue the history of this beautiful dress!"
Paired with a brown cardboard tag, tied with a red string, the new note says, "I bought this dress from the Red Cross for my wedding so this dress has history with this shop!"
The dress retailed in the charity shop for £150 ($AUD 276), but it is clearly priceless in memories.


text:
Two more Netflix Originals have become the latest ‘One-and-Done’ as “Astronomy Club: The Sketch Show” and “Next in Fashion” have both been cancelled.
“Astronomy Club: The Sketch Show” is a comedy sketch show created by Kenya Barris (“Black-ish”) that launched in December 2019. The show starred Barris alongside Keisha Zollar and others members of a performance group from New York called “The Astronomy Club”.
“Next in Fashion” is a competition show that sees 18 fashion designers go head-to-head to win $250,000 and the opportunity to debut a collection with fashion house Net-a-Porter. The show premiered in January 2020.


text:
Jay Faires's quest for endless winter had led him to Mount Hood, Ore., in July, and to a remote lodge without phones in the rooms -- which added a certain degree of difficulty to his ability to close a $25 million deal to sell Mammoth Records, the label he founded in his apartment nine years ago.
But the challenge was not insurmountable. Between snowboarding runs from the 11,000-foot peak, on one of the last snowpacks in America, Mr. Faires used a pay phone and received by fax, the papers that made the Walt Disney Company the winner last week in a monthslong bidding whirl that resembled the competition over a hot, unsigned band.
Despite a staff of only 30, tiny Mammoth has discovered a string of successful alternative-rock acts, including Seven Mary Three, Juliana Hatfield and the Squirrel Nut Zippers. The successes gave Mr. Faires, 34, a reputation for having good ''ears'' -- industry slang for an instinct for what sounds will be commercially successful.
And whatever other strengths the country's second-largest entertainment company might have, Disney has not, thus far, had anyone in its ranks with those kind of ears. The Mammoth purchase is an admission that Disney's long, costly effort to build an in-house rock music label, Hollywood Records, has failed.
''Jay Faires is a terrifically talented young executive who runs a really well-managed unit,'' said Joe Roth, the chairman of Walt Disney Studios, who oversees the music division. ''It signals to the rest of the industry we are seriously going about creating a music group.''
An anatomy of the courtship of Mammoth, which drew four of the six major record companies -- MCA, Polygram, EMI and B.M.G., as well as Disney -- shows that even in a period of stagnation in the industry, with sales of albums depressed, a hot property still has the ability to fetch a surprisingly high price.
The courtship began when Jimmy Iovine, the co-founder of the highly successful label Interscope Records, a unit of the Seagram Company, invited Mr. Faires to share a private jet flight from New York to Los Angeles late last year, to discuss mutual interests.
Strauss Zelnick, the chairman of the North American division of the Bertelsmann Music Group, whose labels include Arista and RCA, took Mr. Faires to dinner at the Screening Room, a downtown Manhattan restaurant, then went to Irving Plaza to see a rock band that Mr. Faires was thinking of signing.
Al Cafaro, the chairman of A&M Records, a unit of Polygram N.V., went further: he and five senior executives flew to Carrboro, N.C. in early June to visit Mammoth's main offices in a former coffee warehouse. ''All the key people sat down and sort of sniffed each other,'' Mr. Cafaro said. ''It was all getting to know you and your people.''
Only late in the game did Disney weigh in. Mr. Roth met with Mr. Faires in Los Angeles in mid-June, then suggested Mr. Faires fly to New York to meet Michael Eisner, Disney's chairman.
''The night before, my dad said, 'What do you wear to a meeting with Michael Eisner?' '' recalled Mr. Faires, who usually dresses in T-shirts and rumpled corduroys. He wore the same to the meeting.
Disney was trying to rescue its beleaguered music division, in particular Hollywood Records, which after eight years and what is said to be an investment of $150 million, had never scored a major rock hit.
Last month the label had to recall an album by an obscure rap act, Insane Clown Posse, on the same day of its release, after Mr. Roth and other red-faced executives became aware of its obscenity-laced lyrics.


text:
During the holiday shopping season a few years ago, Target’s systems were hacked, compromising credit and debit card data of some 40 million customers, and exposing the names and contact information of 70 million people.
Target estimated the total cost of the breach at $252 million. An outside firm, however, added another $38 million for an estimate closer to $290 million. Why the millions in difference?
It turns out that estimating the cost of a security breach is still more art than science, according to research by Colorado State University computer science faculty.
And the issue of assessing hacks is important – to companies as well as to consumers. Security failures might not always be as highly publicized as those at major retailers, such as Target or Home Depot (which suffered a similar incident in 2014). But data breaches occur at more than four in 10 companies in the U.S. each year.
CSU study on security risks
Despite this prevalence – and the increasing amount of sensitive information transmitted digitally every day – “we found out that there has been very little attention paid to the impact,” said Yashwant Malaiya, professor of computer science in the College of Natural Sciences at CSU.
He and colleague Abdullah Algarni, a doctoral researcher in the same department, are among the first researchers to tackle this thorny issue. In studying overall security risk (an organization’s risk being defined as the probability of a breach multiplied by the impact of the breach), they noticed that models to predict the actual financial impact of these data breaches can be radically different.
“Existing approaches can yield widely different values,” Malaiya said – some by two full orders of magnitude. For instance, some companies peg breach costs largely to the cost of personnel time to rectify the situation. Others include additional ramifications, such as lawsuits, increased insurance premiums, lower stock prices, systems security fixes and improvements, and even passing intangibles, such as loss of brand value and market share.
Making matters even stickier is that the few organizations involved in estimating costs, keep their cost models as proprietary, which means their factors and methods remain hidden. How did numbers such as $252 million and $290 million for Target’s breach emerge? The answers are still unclear.
A standard, public model
Malaiya hopes to bring this process into the light, creating a standard, public – and evolving – model. “An open and published model will document the assumptions and the methodology,” he said. And that is a benefit to all. “That will allow methods to be evaluated and refined using further data and further research.” Such a model will permit companies and consumers to compare apples to apples, instead of comparing, say, an apple to a mystery fruit. And perhaps we will one day be able to finally agree on the true cost of hacks – both big and small.
These ideas, for Malaiya, also go beyond corporate offices and consumer purchases. More open models like the ones he hopes to create might also help us better understand economic markets as a whole. “A significant part of the market operates in mysterious ways,” he said. “Hopefully academic studies like ours will help add transparency and reduce the risks to society.”
Their work on the topic was published for the Second International Conference on Information Management earlier this year in London.


text:
Of every 100 vehicles sold in the United States in the third quarter of 2019, just two (actually 1.9) were electric. That’s a sad showing for the future of transportation. What’s sadder? Only one person out of that 100 bought a car with a manual transmission, according to J.D. Power.
That’s for two reasons that are sort of related. One, many of the cheap compacts that feature manual transmissions have been canceled -- cars like the Ford Focus. Second, the other group of cars that come with stick shifts are of a more special variety. Everyone can’t own a Mazda Miata, or a Chevrolet Corvette (the last one) or a Subaru WRX, though the latter is a do-everything car.
“(Manual transmissions) have been on a nearly century-long decline, and while no rational person thinks the trend will ever reverse, it was interesting to note that only this year, after nearly a decade in market, EVs were able to surpass last century’s dying technology,” said Tyson Jominy, vice president, PIN Consulting of the Data and Analytics Division at J.D. Power, in an email to Driving.
What does this mean? Both EVs and manuals make up an extremely low percentage of purchases. But manuals are on the way down, and EVs are on the way up. Only one-third of buyers took a manual in the sporty Toyota 86. Even fewer took one in a Corolla hatch (15 percent) according to CarBuzz. The Mini brand only sells about 10 percent of its cars with manual gears. The Mazda Miata soft top is the lone bright spot. A full 76 percent take a manual in that car, though that drops to about half in the hardtop RF.
It's not all bad news. The new Porsche 911 Carrera S is getting a manual next year; the dual-clutch automatic came first. It’s a no-cost option there, and it does come with a few extras. So, it’s not all bad news. Over at Ford’s SEMA display, the Blue Oval introduced a 900-hp electric Mustang concept, complete with a six-speed. We also recently drove a stick-shift Volkswagen Jetta S that was just lovely.
So, manuals ARE still around, and probably better and more robust than ever. They’re just harder to find.


text:
World's best bank for transaction services 2019: Citi
In an industry of fast-paced change, this is the bank that is not only engaged with but driving change for the benefit of its customers.
Awards for Excellence 2019
Transaction banking is one of the fastest growing businesses for the world’s largest banks. According to business intelligence provider Coalition, transaction banking revenue for the top 12 investment banks in 2018 grew 9%, to reach $31.3 billion in total.
Meanwhile, investment banking revenue grew by just 0.3% to $151.4 billion in the same period.
Transaction services is no longer just a safe way to boost revenue after the financial crisis, but a dynamic and compelling business that banks and other financial institutions are eager to get involved in to boost their balance sheets.
But given the importance of cash management and trade finance, separating genuine developments and innovation from rhetoric is no easy task, especially at the regional level.
Globally, however, there are a few serious players that not only top the rankings in terms of trade and cash revenue but also shape and drive the transaction services agenda. This year, the bank that excels in this space is Citi, the world’s best bank for transaction services.
Firstly, Citi’s treasury and trade solutions close-knit team boasts some of the sector’s strongest expertise. Naveed Sultan, global head of treasury and trade solutions, has been at the helm since 2011.
He is directly supported by Manish Kohli, global head of payments and receivables, and John Ahearn, global head of trade – both leaders in their respective fields and highly regarded in the transaction banking community.
Secondly, Citi’s success is illustrated by the sheer number of transactions the bank makes through its worldwide network and the value this creates.
Across its network of 98 countries – not including the bank’s deep correspondent banking connections – Citi makes $4 trillion of payments every day, including 15% of global dollar flows; it has over 15,000 liquidity structures and six million commercial cards live.
For the full year 2018, treasury and trade solutions revenue for the bank was $9.3 billion – one quarter of the total revenue of the bank’s Institutional Clients Group – and in the first quarter of 2019, revenue for the business rose 10% year on year to $2.4 billion.
The business has been growing for five years straight – and shows no signs of slowing down.
“Our treasury and trade business accounts for very significant value for Citi. The value it creates goes well beyond what it’s financials reflect,” says Sultan. “This goes to show just how central, just how important our cash and trade business is to the bank.”
Only when all participants in the global economy are reaping the benefits of a modern transaction banking landscape can we truly succeed - Naveed Sultan
Thirdly – and most importantly – Citi’s dedication to innovation and technology deserves recognition.
As Sultan explains, the bank is preparing for the “fourth industrial revolution” – a time when the internet of things, blockchain, quantum computing, artificial intelligence, autonomous vehicles, 3D printing and robotics will completely transform payments and trade.
In this context, the bank isn’t just staying up to date with the latest innovations but is actively engaging with partners to drive forward change.
For example, Citi has partnered with Feedzai, a data science company that detects fraud in omnichannel commerce and banking. Citi is integrating Feedzai’s transaction monitoring powered by machine learning into its platforms to provide clients with enhanced control and cyber-risk management for payments.
Citi has also partnered with cloud-based software company, HighRadius, to leverage the company’s AI and machine-learning capabilities to create Citi Smart Match. Smart Match simplifies the way in which corporates match open invoices to received payments, increasing efficiency in cash applications.
Citi Payments Insights – a tool that provides real-time payments visibility – is now available in 70 markets. This gives back control to the bank’s customers, who are able to monitor processing times and correspondent banking fees for all the transactions they make.
“We don’t just work to be the best bank in terms of transaction banking, but we work to ensure that the financial infrastructure around the world is also moving forward – so that cash management and trade finance is moving quickly to be compatible with the needs of digital economy,” says Sultan.
“Only when all participants in the global economy are reaping the benefits of a modern transaction banking landscape can we truly succeed,” he says.


text:
The insect, first reported on June 2, 2021, only occurs when applications first try to use the IndexedDB NoSQL handler to store data. Reloading a web page or an application implementing the API fixes the problem, according to several bug reports.
Still, the situation is far from ideal for web developers and anyone using the desktop or mobile versions of Safari. While there are a variety of storage APIs available for web developers, Indexed comics is one of the two (the other being the Cache Storage API) which is advised; the other options have specific use cases, gaps, or are not widely supported.
Feross Aboukhadijeh, an open source developer who manages Socket, said Monday that the bug prevented his company’s web file transfer application, Wormhole, from working on initial load until a workaround was implemented.
âOpening an IndexedDB database fails 100% of the time on the first try,â he said. noted via Twitter. “If you refresh, it starts to work.”
âIt’s really, really hard to build reliable websites on macOS and iOS with amazing bugs like this,â he said. added, imploring Apple’s WebKit team to prioritize a fix. “It should have been detected by basic unit tests.”
Safari’s issues with IndexedDB arise as web developers wait for the release of a fix for a bug affecting local storage, a more limited browser storage API, in Safari 14.1 and later, and word that an IndexedDB crash bug reported in 2019 will attract attention.
Paulus Esterhazy, Director of Engineering at Presentation biz Pitch, recently documented various issues with IndexedDB, many of which have to do with Safari, in a GitHub article.
âThe Webkit team continues to send critical bugs related to storage to production over and over again,â he wrote.
Navigator engineering teams for Chromium, Edge, and Firefox, among others, regularly introduce their own bugs – Apple doesn’t have a monopoly on code errors.
But Apple’s technology poses a particular challenge for web developers, as the company requires all iOS browsers to be based on WebKit, the rendering engine used in Safari. Competition with WebKit is simply not allowed on iOS.
Apple’s platform rules are currently under close scrutiny by lawmakers and antitrust officials around the world and, in California, by U.S. District Court Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers, who is expected to deliver a ruling in the near future. in connection with Epic Games’ antitrust lawsuit against Apple.
Google software engineers like Alex Russell have long complained that Apple’s browser development roadmap, limited API adoption, and platform rules ensure that web apps cannot compete with native iOS platform apps.
But others not affiliated with a major competitor of Apple share this feeling of frustration.
“Given Safari’s privileged position on iOS, Apple has been disappointing in how slowly they adopt standards (if at all) and how slow implementations are incomplete, such as for media playback and WebRTC.” , said software developer Matt Mastracci in an email to The register.
“At one point, the developers’ experience on Safari was high end, but they fall into the same trap as Microsoft when they had a monopoly on the desktop browser.”
In a recent Publish to Hacker News, Aboukhadijeh complained that Apple’s actions give the impression that Cupertino is “downright web hostile” and eager to push developers to build native platform apps (that unlike web apps , Apple can control through its App Store rules).
Apple’s neglect and underinvestment in the web platform definitely prevents websites or ‘PWAs’ from having ‘the look, feel and functionality of a native application,’ he said. he writes, “Safari suffers from the double effect of the limitations Apple has intentionally put in place and the intentional understaffing of the Safari team.”
We asked Apple about the IndexedDB bug and if its Safari team is understaffed compared to the competition. We would be stunned if he decided to answer. Â®


text:
With a public charging station newly built about 3 km away from his home, Guo Xin'an, a villager from Juwang Village of Anqing City, east China's Anhui Province, no longer needs to drive to the city proper to charge his new energy vehicle (NEV) -- a great relief for the vehicle owner in rural China.
During a conference held recently in a bid to promote the formation of an NEV industrial agglomeration in the province, Anhui announced the initiation of an all-inclusive charging infrastructure construction at the city, county, and township levels this year. It is expected to basically achieve full coverage of such charging facilities in the province by 2025, making Anhui a user-friendly province for NEV lovers.
As the world's major single market for electric vehicles, China has launched a series of policies to bolster the development of its booming NEV sector, which includes building a complete charging infrastructure network.
In May, China released a guideline to support people living in rural areas to purchase and use NEVs, with a focus on boosting the construction of charging infrastructures. By the end of May, China had built more than 6.35 million units of charging infrastructure.
Besides building a complete charging infrastructure network, governments at all levels across the country have also rolled out a raft of policy incentives to spur NEV production and marketing.
In June, Anhui introduced a slew of measures to form an NEV industrial agglomeration. The province plans to see its automobile production scale exceed 3 million units, among which the NEV output will occupy over 40 percent.
Chengdu, capital of southwest China's Sichuan Province, provides direct monetary incentives for enterprises that develop or introduce NEV car models; south China's Guangdong Province unveiled multiple policies to encourage purchasing NEVs and optimize the driving environment of such vehicles.
To further unleash the potential of NEV consumption, China has announced that it will extend its preferential purchase tax policy for NEVs to the end of 2027. Preliminary estimates show the policy will result in a total of 520 billion yuan (about 72 billion U.S. dollars) of tax exemptions and reductions.
Industry insiders believe that with these favorable policies, China's NEV sales will hit about 9 million units this year, and the share of NEVs in China's automobile market will reach some 60 percent in 2025, with annual NEV sales of about 17 million units.
The burgeoning NEV industry has aroused interest among foreign investors.
"China has grown into a powerhouse of the international automotive industry," said Dr. Juergen Hasenpusch, chief finance officer for Volkswagen Anhui, adding that the Volkswagen Anhui NEV project aims to invest a total of 23.1 billion yuan in research and development (R&D), manufacturing, and sales of NEVs in China.
In late May, Volkswagen inked an investment agreement to build an R&D, innovation, and procurement center for fully connected electric cars in Hefei, capital of Anhui. The center is expected to be put into operation in early 2024.
In April, U.S. carmaker Tesla Inc. announced that it will build a new mega factory in Shanghai, which will be dedicated to manufacturing the company's energy-storage product Megapack.
With the implementation of policies including building more charging facilities in rural areas and exempting purchase tax, China's NEV market is expected to usher in even greater growth, said Chen Shihua, deputy secretary-general of the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.


text:
Archive for the ‘Consumer Goods’ category
“Africa was booming and my dreams seemed more feasible over there.”
“The macro story in East Africa echoes that of Africa, and that makes it a relatively more attractive region.”
A major Chinese shoe manufacturer is lacing up for the long run in this economic powerhouse. Will others follow?
Selling satellite phones, electronics and heavy vehicles is Ian Cox’s business.
Thorough research and on-the-ground experience is key to understanding and unlocking Africa’s complex consumer market.
Engen’s innovative strategy is a marketing tool and a way of growing its business.
In order to gain success in African markets, multinational companies need to become truly local.
“The market is huge and there really is space for everyone,” says Zashadu Bags founder.
Ole! Media Group founder describes the broad reach of mobile marketing campaigns.
Founder of artistic creation company Ali Omar talks about his budding business on the Kenyan island of Lamu.
“Companies that fail to dig deep into the consumer psyche in African markets before making a move are bound to fail.”
Expanding food brands across Nigeria involves customer education and investment in the supply chain.
“We have what it takes to take on the big guys and beat them at their own game.”
Nigerian online shopping platform Jumia lists its 10 top selling products for 2013.
“Entrepreneurship is a process,” says Domitila Silayo, second runner up for the 2013 Anzisha Prize.


text:
Erisler Gida is in the noodle market
30 April 20145 min reading
Being one of the top three companies in flour production of Turkey and among the top 100 exporters of Turkey, Erisler Gida entered to the Turkish noodle market with NUDO brand. Entering into the market assertively, the company aims to quadruple the 25 million-piece Turkish noodle market in 1 year.
Exporting 240 thousand tons of flour to nearly 50 countries of the world in 2013, constituting an important added value for the country economy with the export figures over 100 million dollars; Erisler Gida started noodle production with NUDO brand as a result of the 3,5-year R&D studies. As the constant of the Far Eastern cuisine, noodle gets a proper formation to the Turkish palate with a completely natural and additive-free content thanks to NUDO.
Providing a practical, square meal and a delicious alternative by being prepared in hot water in 3 minutes; NUDO will meet with the consumers with the products for table, in cups and bags.
64-YEAR FOOD INDUSTRY EXPERIENCE HAS BEEN TRANSFERRED TO NUDO
Erisler Gida Retail Group General Manager Abdullah Eris said the following in the launch meeting of NUDO: “Food production has become a matter of conscience in the 21st century. As Erisler Gida operating in the food industry for 64 years, we feel comfortable as we produce NUDO without using any additive harmful to health. MSG (Monosodium glutamate) that has been the subject of much debate in the eyes of consumers for years is not added into NUDO. NUDO does not include food colorant, artificial preservatives, sweeteners and artificial flavors. Thus, we are happy that we bring together noodle that is consumed fondly by the employees, young people, kids and everyone from 7 to 70 with the consumers after giving it a natural and healthy form.”
150 MILLION-DOLLAR EXPORT IS AIMED
Stating he believes that they will be the generic brand as the first Turkish company entered to this market, Abdullah Eris emphasized that NUDO will be the leader brand of Erisler Gida in the retail industry. Indicating that as Erisler Gida they exported 240 thousand tons of flour to nearly 50 countries of the world in 2013 and constituted an important added value for the country economy with the export figures over 100 million dollars, Abdullah Eris pointed out that they will transfer this experience to NUDO.
Abdullah Eris counted European Union, neighboring countries and also African and Middle Eastern countries among the ones which are the primary target markets planned for exporting NUDO in the next period. Stating that they have a significant potential in the export thanks to the facts that noodle consumption all around the world has increased rapidly and NUDO is healthy with additive-free formula, Abdullah Eris said that they aim to realize 150 million-dollar NUDO export in 2023.
104 BILLION OF NOODLES ARE CONSUMED AROUND THE WORLD
In his explanation, Erisler Gida Retail Group Sales Manager Niyazi Hamzaoglu explained how they entered into the noodle market. Stating that they started their journey with the question of ‘Why there is not any noodle matching our palate in Turkey?’, Niyazi Hamzaoglu pointed out the increasing noodle consumption in the world and said the following: “Having 5 thousand-year history, noodle is consumed more and more each passing day due to that the fast life trend is increasingly spread in the entire world and it is suitable for the life preferences of the young population. When the figures are reviewed; noodle consumption throughout the world in 2012 reached to 102 billion. When the figures of the neighboring countries of Turkey are reviewed; it is seen that 2,1 billion packages of noodle in Russia, 590 million in Saudi Arabia, 150 million in Turkic Republics like Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan and 200 million in Germany are consumed. In 2022, noodle consumption will exceed 200 billion packages.”
“WE WILL REACH 150 MILLION-SALES FIGURES”
Stating that the noodle market in Turkey has not been matured yet, Niyazi Hamzaoglu indicated that 10 million packages were sold in 2012 and 25 million packages in 2013. Saying that with NUDO their target is to quadruple the market size of their first year target, pointed out that they aim 70 million packages of NUDO sales in 2014 and 150 million packages in 2015. Pointing that NUDO will be the leading brand in the market with its practical, qualified, healthy and innovative vision; Hamzaoglu said that they have taken their places at national, discount and local retail points. Hamzaoglu added that they will carry NUDO to the points where direct target groups are with the alternative sales channels in the next period.
100 MILLION-DOLLAR EXPORT
Starting out as a little business in Anatolia, today Erisler Gida has transformed into a group that exports 240 thousand tons of flour to nearly 50 countries in the world (in 2013) and constitutes added value for the country economy with the export figures exceeding 100 million dollars. Over 400 employees are hired in the companies of Erisler Gida. Having an annual endorsement of over 430 million TL, Erisler Gida’s 2023 target is to form 400 million-dollar export input.
There are wholesale and retail groups under Erisler Gida. Eris Un is under the wholesale with its sub-brands. Eris Un and Ozde are under the retail group. Under Ozde, vegetable oil and premium flour brands will be put on the market after NUDO.
Articles in News Category
25 January 20241 min reading
GEA Recognized as a ‘Top Employer 2024’ in Europe


text:
Ford has a long history with one-off, high-performance vans using racecar powertrains, and it seems like it’s gearing up to reveal a new version at the 2022 Goodwood Festival of Speed.
Set to be revealed on June 23, Ford News Europe has uploaded a short video on its social media saying that “something electrifying” is coming.
The 22-second video mainly focuses on a racing helmet that has Ford Performance and Ford Pro (Ford’s commercial division) badges on it, as well as Goodwood Festival of Speed badging with the June 23 date on it.
There are extremely short glimpses at a vehicle that appears to have a blocky, van-like silhouette in the background and there is a closer look at its full-width light bar at the front.
Recently, Ford of Europe teased its upcoming electric vehicles (EVs) and all the commercial vehicles in the shadowy images had a similar segmented front light bars besides the existing e-Transit.
It’s not confirmed but this upcoming vehicle could be the fourth reincarnation of the Ford Transit-inspired Supervan with an all-electric powertrain.
Ford first revealed its first Supervan in 1971 and was based on the chassis of a GT40 race car with a pressed-steel body that resembled the first-generation Transit.
It retained the GT40’s high-performance 5.0-litre small block Ford V8 which produced 324kW of power.
The first Supervan could apparently do the 0-60mph (0-96.5km/h) sprint in 7.0 seconds and had a top speed of more than 240km/h.
Following the success of the first Supervan, Ford debuted a second high-performance van in 1984 that traded the steel body for a lightweight alternative and featured dramatic aerodynamic additions.
It was based on the aluminium honeycomb chassis of the Ford C100 Group C race car and was powered by a 3.9-litre Cosworth V8 which is claimed to produce around 440kW.
The last and most recent version of the Supervan was revealed in 1994 and used the body of the existing Supervan 2 but paired it with updated looks.
It was initially powered by an F1-derived 3.5-litre Cosworth HB V8 which produced around 470kW. The powertrain was later swapped to a Ford-Cosworth Pro Sports 3000 V6 which produced around 194kW.
It’s unclear how much power and torque this potential electrifying Ford Performance-enhanced Pro vehicle will produce, but if the bonkers all-electric Ford Mustang Mach-E 1400 drift car is anything to go off, expect big things.
As previously mentioned, Ford of Europe has said it will launch seven new electric models by 2024.
One of these electric models is the recently-revealed e-Transit Custom one-tonne van. It will go into production in 2023 along with its Tourneo Custom people mover variant.
This will be followed by EV variants of the smaller next-generation Transit Courier van and Tourneo Courier people mover.
The e-Transit has already been unveiled and will go on sale in Australia from mid-2022.
With these new vehicles, which also include two passenger cars based on the Volkswagen Group MEB platform, Ford is planning to sell over 600,000 EVs in Europe by 2026.